Category: Confidential Information and Trade Secrets

business litigation, Confidential Information and Trade Secrets

Protecting Intellectual Property

Mark Schroeder

Intellectual property, from formulas and brand names to distinctive logos, are becoming more valuable assets for many businesses. Their value can vanish or decrease if they are not protected from misappropriation, and the type of intellectual property usually determines the best type of protection. Some of the ways to best protect intellectual property include:

  • Non-Disclosure Agreements. NDAs prohibit the signer from misusing your intellectual property and obligates them to return or destroy it on request.
  • Digital Protections. Strong passwords, encryption, limiting access, and investing in cybersecurity tools prevent data breaches and intellectual property theft.
  • Copyright. Copyright protects original works that are in a tangible form, such as written materials, blogs, designs, apps, lyrics, and music. While your creation is automatically protected by common law copyright, registering it with the U.S. Copyright Office provides extra legal benefits.
  • Trademark. Trademarks protect items like your brand name, logo, or slogan that identifies your business in the marketplace. Use the ™ symbol on a brand or product name as soon as it is being used in commerce and once the trademark is registered use the ® symbol indicating a registered trademark providing additional legal benefits.
  • Patents. Patents protect inventions and innovations. Obtaining a patent is complicated and expensive as most patents require the assistance of a lawyer and engineer.
  • Trade Secrets. Trade secrets are your confidential information that gives your business a competitive edge, but you need to take steps to identify and safeguard them.
  • Contracts and Licensing Agreements. Well drafted contracts and licensing agreements outline ownership, licensing rights, how the property can be used, and compensation, allowing you to retain ownership while giving others permission to use and monetize your intellectual property

The attorneys at Brooks, Tarulis & Tibble, LLC can advise you and your business on your rights in such situations and address your concerns. Please contact me if you have any questions or issues.

Mark W. Schroeder
Brooks, Tarulis & Tibble, LLC
(630) 355-2101
mschroeder@napervillelaw.com
http://www.napervillelaw.com

business litigation, Confidential Information and Trade Secrets

Cyber Security for Your Business

Mark Schroeder

Experts predict that the next wave of litigation against businesses may involve cybersecurity and the failure of businesses to implement pragmatic protections to avoid or minimize the theft or disclosure of private personal information (PPI) or confidential customer information. While insurance may be available to cover some of these losses, the risks to your business and its reputation could be substantial.

Nothing provides immunity from liability, but these steps could decrease liability, exposure or loss:

  • Assess the data you collect, where it is stored and how it is used.
  • Make educated decisions about what data to collect and/or retain.
  • Understand how you use and share the data you collect and retain.
  • Evaluate the locations where sensitive data is stored and its security.
  • Restrict access to sensitive data to trusted employees and agents who need to know.
  • Require secure authentication passwords for access with frequent changes.
  • Routinely monitor your data storage and collection network for breaches or hacks.
  • Know your vendors and service providers’ data protection policies and procedures.
  • Have written privacy and data destruction policies tailored to your business.
  • Communicate your policies to all appropriate people.
  • Train employees to follow privacy policies and procedures.
  • Provide where to direct complaints and have and have a plan to address with them.
  • Ensure that security vendors are qualified to provide appropriate services.
  • Regularly review your efforts and methods to protect information.
  • Keep apprised of the legal requirements applicable to your business and its data.
  • Stay current with government, industry and association standards and best practices.
  • Know what your current insurance policies require and cover.
  • Develop an incident response plan to address any breach.

If you have any questions or if I can assist you in this regard, please contact me.

This Blog is designed to provide our friends and clients with information regarding the various subject matters covered. It is not designed to take place of legal, accounting or other professional advice.  If expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. This memorandum may constitute advertising under the rules regulating Illinois attorneys.
Confidential Information and Trade Secrets

Protection of Business Information

Mark Schroeder

While all businesses hope to maintain loyal and honest employees, your relationship can change dramatically when an employee is solicited or hired by a competitor.  With much of your business information stored, communicated or accessible remotely by electronic devices, every business should address protecting its information from unauthorized use or disclosure.

Policies and procedures should be implemented and acknowledged by your employees that your business information belongs to your business and that their access to it is solely for the purpose of conducting your business.  Even if their job includes accumulating, analyzing and storing business or industry information, it belongs to your business.  It is difficult to protect information if you fail to tell your employees its importance and ownership.

Your business should also take reasonable steps to protect its information.  Agreements with employees, policies and procedures acknowledged by your employees, using only business owned storage and communication devices, password protection, limited access to information, locked files and confidential stamped documents can go a long way to prevent the theft or misuse of business information and to obtain legal relief in the event of misappropriation.  This is particularly important when employees work remotely or from home.

Your business should also have clear rules on what electronic devices can be used to conduct business and, if the devices belong to the business, what personal business, if any, can be conducted on them.  Owning all electronic devices used, including smart phones and their phone numbers, is best.  At termination these devices can be retrieved, and tampering with, downloading or deleting business information can usually be determined.  All passwords and user names must be disclosed to the business.  By restricting personal use of business equipment, you can reduce liability for employees’ inappropriate uses.

My firm and I counsel and advise businesses on protecting confidential and proprietary information, and updating their protections.  Should you have any questions in this regard, please contact me.

Mark W. Schroeder
Brooks, Tarulis & Tibble, LLC
(630) 355-2101
mschroeder@napervillelaw.com
http://www.napervillelaw.com